I am not my body The mantra of all body modders the world over. The belief or understanding that you are not your body. That you exist beyond the flesh and blood that holds you erect. That a part of you is eternal, and never changing. That your body is transient and will die and decay, but that which is really you will ride on, further exploring the realms of consciousness... oh yeah!
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Ear stretching has been practiced by people all over the world from ancient times.
Even mummified bodies with stretched earlobes have been discovered, including the oldest mummified body discovered to date, that of Ötzi the Iceman, (3300BC) which was found in an Italian glacier. This mummy had a stretch of somewhere between 7 - 11mm (1 to 000 gauge) in diameter. He also had tattoos. So we've been stretching our earlobes in europe for over 5000 years!
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Ear Stretching has historically taken place in many cultures around the world for thousands of years. Bone , Horn , Wood and Stone were generally carved for ear stretching, but other organic materials that had the right shape naturally, from shells to teeth and claws, were also used. The urge to decorate and modify our bodies is ancient and deep rooted, and shows no sign of stopping.
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Stretched Ear Lobes The stylised Moai we use in our logo is one of the famous giant 'Easter Island' Heads.
'Easter Island' is traditionally known as 'Rapa Nui'. The polynesian tribals who built these sculptures were famous for their stretched ear lobes.
Easter Island, is situated in the southeast Pacific over 1,000 miles from the other islands of Eastern Polynesia and some 1,400 miles west of South America, it is one of the most remote inhabited places in the world.
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 | Nearly all Rapa Nui wood sculptures share a number of stylistic features, including bald crania, prominent brow ridges and goatee beards. Most depict the stretching of the earlobes practiced by men and women until the practice was discouraged by missionaries at the end of the nineteenth century.
The stretched ear lobes are frequently depicted with ear plugs or flesh tunnels made from shark vertebrae.
"Orejones" means "big ears" in Spanish, and was used to describe Inca royalty; Hanau Eepe was once said to mean "long ears" and referred to the ruling class on Easter Island (vs. the Hanau Momoko or "short ears"). |
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| "Orejones" means "big ears" in Spanish, and was used to describe Inca royalty; Hanau Eepe was once said to mean "long ears" and referred to the ruling class on Easter Island (vs. the Hanau Momoko or "short ears"). Note, that earplugs or discs were undeniably worn by both the Inca and the early Easter Islanders (some of the moai were carved with elongated earlobes) |
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 | Tutankhamen Not many people know that Tutankhamen had stretched ear lobes... |
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Buddha Buddha, as an aristocratic and wealthy prince, wore heavy earrings that stretched his ear lobes. This was a status symbol.
When he finally renounced his wealth and discarded his jewelry, he ear lobes were permanently stretched.
As a way of rememberiing Buddhas act of personal self-sacrifice, in walking away from his wealth, all succeeding images of Buddhas show these elongated ear lobes |  |
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Rising Fawn Major George Lowrey, also known as Rising Fawn, (1770-1852), Assistant Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation and member of the Executive Council. ! and he was half Scotish !
He was a banker, soldier, law enforcement officer, planter, breeder, and political leader.
He wears a turban, saltire sash, and medal he received from the President of the United States, holds a wampum belt symbolic of his high office in tribal government, and has silver nose and ear ornaments of a Sephardic Jewish design. What a crossover !
His father came from Scotland and his mother was the daughter and granddaughter of Echota Cherokee chiefs. |  |
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 | Ear Tunnel
Guatemala, (A.D. 900-1500)
Although found in the highlands of Guatemala, these pieces of thinly worked obsidian may have been traded from a Post-Classic Mexican center specializing in producing such extraordinary ornaments.
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| Hill tribes live in the mountainous region of Thailand's north. Thais call them "chao khao" (mountain people). Each tribe keeps its own language, beliefs, and customs. Hmong woman wear huge ear lobe tunnels. |  |
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Ear Stretching more interesting stuff as i find it.....
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